The top three most popular travel destinations for Australian residents in 2015-16 were New Zealand, Indonesia (including Bali), and the United States of America, according to figures released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

Libby O'Toole from the ABS' Migration Analysis and Reporting Team said the same three countries were among the most popular travel destinations for Australians 10 years ago, along with the United Kingdom.

"Australians made 1.3 million short-term trips across the Tasman to New Zealand last financial year, 452,300 more trips than we made 10 years ago," said Ms O'Toole.

"Short-term resident departures to Indonesia have increased more than five times over the last 10 years. At 1.2 million trips, this was the second most frequently visited country."

The United States of America rounded out the top three in 2015-16, more than doubling the 2005-06 figure at more than 1.0 million trips.

In 2015-16, holidays made up 59 per cent of all journeys, and the average amount of time people spent outside Australia was 23 days.

"Most international visitors come from New Zealand, with 1.3 million Kiwis taking short-term trips last financial year, over 246,400 more than 10 years ago," said Ms O'Toole.

"Visitors from China followed as the second most popular source of travellers to Australia, with 1.2 million visitors. This was almost four times the number that came to Australia in 2005-06."